Case Study: Victoria's Secret OVERVIEWVictoria's Secret, one of the world's most recognizable fashion brands, established itself in the Bay Area in the early 1970s. Originally owned by an ambitious Stanford graduate looking for a convenient and exclusive retailer to purchase his wife's lingerie, Roy Raymond opened the first store at the Stanford Mall. Designed in the style of a Victorian boudoir, Raymond's success prompted him to open three more locations, a catalog business and a corporate headquarters within a few years. His inability to balance finances with his creative vision, Roy Raymond landed in trouble and was forced to sell his company for the small sum of $1 million to The Limited, an Ohio-based conglomerate owned by Les Wexner. Les Wexner quickly expanded into the national attention Victoria's Secret received by opening over 400 stores in 1990 and currently operates approximately 950 stores nationwide. Although Victoria's Secret is known for lingerie sales, it has successfully launched a beauty division and also sells brands such as Betsy Johnson, Dolce & Gabbana and Intimissimi, an affordable Italian brand. Victoria's Secret Direct, the company's catalog division, continues to see growth as sales reached $870 million in 2005, but the star is still the retail stores. Annual Victoria's Secret store sales exceeded $2.6 billion in 2005, and our Powell Street store recently surpassed the $10 million sales mark in 2006, making it the company's 13th store in based on volume.PROBLEM ANALYSIS+We are using October 2006 as the basis for our projected sales due to the many changes that have occurred in the last year. Several product lines have been... middle of paper... in a major hotel and tourist destination. Associate behavior and tenure also impact sales. Selling intimate apparel is a more complicated operation than the average person realizes. A good understanding of what will work best for each client is critical, and new associates have not memorized everything that is necessary for success. However, a tenured associate will know how and what the customer needs and will ensure that they leave happy. Management experience will also play an important role in the success of the forecast. The current team is fairly new and will gain the necessary experience over the next year in hopes of staying on track for success. Management's ability to ensure the product is readily available to the customer, its training techniques with new and experienced employees, and overall management style will ensure success or spell defeat for the store.